Author Archives: zedstarr

Replacing the white LED stylus target light on Audio-Technica AT-LP120X

I recently bought a new turntable, the Audio-Technica AT-LP120XUSB. I wanted direct drive, decent mid-range quality (didn’t need the absolute highest spec due to my ageing & damaged hearing – I blame the school discos of the 1980s, and Roni Size gigs šŸ˜¦ ) and USB built-in so I could hook up recording/streaming devices. IContinue reading “Replacing the white LED stylus target light on Audio-Technica AT-LP120X”

Bosch-Worcester 35CDi Fan Failure

It was a cold start to 2021, outside temps well below freezing, I guess that was the final straw for the ~20yr old fan in my combi boiler. On New Year’s Day I’d noticed it was making more noise that usual as I was putting some rubbish in the wheelie bin, nothing more than aContinue reading “Bosch-Worcester 35CDi Fan Failure”

Grafana, Influxdb & telegraf based home temperature monitoring with Raspberry Pi and the humble DS18B20

Creating a temperature monitoring dashboard in Grafana to display temps from sensors all around the house. Running on Raspberry Pis and using the venerable DS18B20 one-wire sensor.

Flashing LEDs with a 555 timer – and not a lot else

Just dug this out of storage – some electronics I made in the late 80s/early 90s. Most of it is old/scrap components that were lying around on my desk – only the (socketed) 555 and MC14526 counter/divider actually do anything; flashing the LEDs along the edge. I can remember making it at work during quietContinue reading “Flashing LEDs with a 555 timer – and not a lot else”

Build ā€“ least amount of effort

Hmmm. Similar technique to how I created "Bra Hair" by Japanese Spam Hammer back in the day… Try this: 1 – Go to Wikipedia and hit random article. The first random Wikipedia article you get is the name of your band. 2 – Go to The Quotations Page – Your Source for Famous Quotes andContinue reading “Build ā€“ least amount of effort”

Winamp on Android ā€“ itā€™s like being back in 1997!

Can't believe it, back in 1997 Winamp was THE media player, mp3 files were just becoming popular… I remember running winamp on the first laptop I ever bought, a hulking big AJP 6200, running win95. Winamp on a portable device is what I longed for in 1997 – imagine winamp on a Psion Series5! IContinue reading “Winamp on Android ā€“ itā€™s like being back in 1997!”

IEEE Spectrum: Autonomous Vehicle Driving from Italy to China

POSTED BY: Erico Guizzo  /  Tue, September 21, 2010 The Russian policeman waved at the orange van zigzagging around the empty plaza, ordering it to stop. The van didnā€™t, so the officer stepped closer to address the driver. But there was no driver. The van is an autonomous vehicle developed at the University of Parmaā€™sContinue reading “IEEE Spectrum: Autonomous Vehicle Driving from Italy to China”